Horse mat rubber for handles?

I started using it recently and really like it. I don't think theres a more comfortable material out there and it absorbs shock well. Works best with a sharp 36 grit belt and slow speeds. I finish it at about 220 or so. CA glue and G flex epoxy bond well to it but for some reason I always have problems with getting the edges to bond. The main thing I don't like about it is that it is very porous and will absorb water.

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KalEl said:
I started using it recently and really like it. I don't think theres a more comfortable material out there and it absorbs shock well. Works best with a sharp 36 grit belt and slow speeds. I finish it at about 220 or so. CA glue and G flex epoxy bond well to it but for some reason I always have problems with getting the edges to bond. The main thing I don't like about it is that it is very porous and will absorb water.

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That's strange? We have our entire gym floor done in stall mats with the diamond plate texture and I've never noticed a issue with water.
I've never used it on a knife though.
 
Some horse stall mats are not water permeable, and some are, depends if you want the horse urine to puddle on the surface or under. Stall Savers brand for instance allows the water to to run through the mat.
 
Just curious..................... Who sells horse stall mat material cut up in sizes a knifemaker would find useful?

Buying it at Farm and Fleet in 100 pound sheets seems excessive ( although the price would be VERY attractive ). Then again there aren't many Farm and Fleets in Chicago..............
 
synthesist said:
Just curious..................... Who sells horse stall mat material cut up in sizes a knifemaker would find useful?

Buying it at Farm and Fleet in 100 pound sheets seems excessive ( although the price would be VERY attractive ). Then again there aren't many Farm and Fleets in Chicago..............
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You can buy a (approx) 6'X6' mat at tractor supply for $30-35 bucks. I don't have any idea where you could buy it in Chicago tho. The horse mat I've used repels water.
 
David Stifle said:
You can buy a (approx) 6'X6' mat at tractor supply for $30-35 bucks. I don't have any idea where you could buy it in Chicago tho. The horse mat I've used repels water.
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Those are the ones I've been eyeballing. So many farms around here I could maybe find some scraps. Around here people have enormous rolls of the stuff next to their stalls. Never bought them for my horse stalls though.

So the TS mats repel? Good to know, I'd rather not resort to "accidentally" spilling my drink on em at the local store to find out.

The big mats would make a few dozen sets I'd imagine.
 
Living in horse country, I thought that it was going to be a piece of cake to pick up some small pieces. Not the case so far. However I have a lead that I'm sure is going to pan out. There is a guy in my town that builds aluminum trailers. I have been advised that he uses it in his horse trailers, some of which are nicer than my first apartment, and he throws away the trimmings. So perhaps there are such places near you, and sounds like for sure near you Anthony.

These guys http://www.rubberflooringinc.com/ sent me three samples of their product in my own specified thicknesses. The samples are 3"x3" so only useful by themselves on a neck knife or maybe something with bolsters (and rubber!?! talking about a tuxedo worn with Chuck Taylors). At any rate it is a good opportunity to get such a product in one's hands to see if it is something useful. I got samples in 1/4", 3/8", and 1/2" in two types or grades. I could not really tell much difference between the two different grades I chose. Both were pebbly and porous with flecks of lighter colors sprinkled throughout.

Several of the suppliers listed in the stickies advertise horse stall mat scales or neoprene scales. Are the neoprene scales a denser product and less porous or are they about the same as the stall mat material?

Gutta Percha. Is there any place that anyone knows to get it other than bulk dental points? The guys in the 19th century liked it pretty well for knife handles, and gun grips and cool little boxes to put Derringers in... It is commercially available somewhere and IIRC from previous research on the subject, it is relatively easy to work and to mold. It may not be as technically good as modern rubbers and plastics but the coolness factor on a modern knife with a gutta percha handle is way up there.
 
Gutta Percha ... Had to look that one up. :) Kinda cool precursor to Bakelite and vulcanized rubber. I very well may have some in my jaw somewhere too, but I will refrain from harvesting it for the cause. :p

I went ahead and ordered some of those samples just out of curiosity. Thanks for the link.

I'm not sure about neoprene. I know RichardJ uses it. Been a while since I've been around a wet suit. I wouldn't want handles made from the thin neoprene that my Puma jacket is made from, but I don't think it's a very similar product going by the pics I've seen.
 
synthesist said:
Just curious..................... Who sells horse stall mat material cut up in sizes a knifemaker would find useful?

Buying it at Farm and Fleet in 100 pound sheets seems excessive ( although the price would be VERY attractive ). Then again there aren't many Farm and Fleets in Chicago..............
Click to expand...

You could look up Chuck Richards. I got some from him.
 
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